Politics1 min read

Goa filmmaker, 28, wins awards for low-budget film on traditional goldsmiths

By · Via Times of India · Published by Everything Blog

In short

The documentary *Bhaangar Kalakusar Karigiri* draws on Shirodkar's lineage, as both her father and grandfather were traditional goldsmiths who understood the trade's intricate language. Shot without prior camera experience or a formal crew, the film details unique methods like utilizing thin metal wire to engrave personal names onto custom ornaments. Shirodkar's partner managed the editing, while her father penned the authentic script in Konkani. This grassroots approach culminated in multiple critical prizes across international film circuits, establishing vital archival documentation of regional craft practices.

Key points

  • Intimate family knowledge and native language usage preserved the authentic cultural nuan…: Intimate family knowledge and native language usage preserved the authentic cultural nuances of Goa's goldsmith community.
  • Grassroots independent documentaries can secure major international festival awards despi…: Grassroots independent documentaries can secure major international festival awards despite minimal budgets and initial rejections.
  • The project successfully accelerated Shirodkar's film industry career, leading to an assi…: The project successfully accelerated Shirodkar's film industry career, leading to an assistant director role in Mumbai.

Sources checked by our analysis pipeline: 1

When COVID-19 happened, the world was left clueless. The pandemic changed the lives of a number of people including Prachi Shirodkar. The girl had enrolled in an architecture course, before the pandemic. But the 2020 lockdown gave the then-aspiring architect time to reconsider her choices and pick up the camera and become a story-teller instead. Six years later, the 28-year-old Goan girl is a filmmaker who has received recognition for her documentary on the traditional goldsmith community of Goa.

Meet Prachi ShirodkarPrachi Shirodkar was a year into her Bachelor of Architecture (B.Arch) in 2020 but then a pandemic hit the world and changed her plans. Colleges, schools, offices and nearly everything in the world got shut down. And this was the time when Shirodkar started working on her Konkani film, Bhaangar Kalakusar Karigiri. A movie she made with almost no budget and without prior experience operating a camera. Today the same film has won awards and travelled to international film festivals.

As per her Instagram account, the Konkani documentary has won the Special Jury Award in the Under 15 Minutes…

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